Ring
by KagamineKagami
Summary: Eiji was only trying to help Oishi, but he loses something important and turns all the socks in the house pink. Oops.


Ring

**Today (April 7) is No Housework Day. I'll celebrate by not doing housework, just like every other day. ^^ -Rin**

Kikumaru Eiji didn't like cleaning very much, so he didn't do it often. But today was No Housework Day, and despite the name of the holiday, Eiji was washing dishes.

He would have preferred not to do any housework at all, but when he'd told Oishi about the holiday, Oishi didn't want to celebrate by not cleaning.

"Unyaa! Oishiiii, it's No Housework Day! You can't do housework!" Oishi smiled.

"It needs to be done, so I'll just have to observe No Housework Day next year." Eiji pouted for a moment before coming up with an idea.

"I'll do it. You always do the cleaning and stuff, so you have to celebrate No Housework Day." Eiji had to reassure Oishi that he would do everything just right. He wouldn't use the wrong detergent for the laundry, he wouldn't vacuum up paperclips, and so on.

Once Oishi was (somewhat) sure Eiji would be okay cleaning by himself, he went to read a book he'd checked out from the library. Eiji set to work as soon as Oishi left the room. The sooner he started, the sooner he could be done.

Eiji put the laundry in the washing machine, dusted the living room (after hopping around pretending the duster was a lightsaber for a while), and started on the dishes.

Before he turned the water on, Eiji took off his ring, a plain silver band, and set it by the sink. It was a present from Oishi, and he didn't want to get it all soapy. There weren't too many dirty dishes to wash, and he got them all clean fairly quickly.

But while he was drying them, he accidentally knocked his ring into the sink, and it went down the garbage disposal. Eiji immediately stuck his hand down the disposal after it, catching it with the quick reflexes he always bragged about.

Only now his hand was stuck. It had fit when he put it in, but now that he was holding the ring in his fist, he couldn't get it out. Not without letting go of the ring, which he didn't want to do. He looked around for anything that could help him while trying to pull his hand out. The only things within reach were the clean dishes and the towel he had been using to dry, and he didn't think those would help.

He stopped trying to wiggle his hand free and leaned on the counter to think about it. That proved to be a bad idea, because it was then that Eiji remembered what garbage disposals were for. They chopped up food into little pieces that would fit down the pipes. What if it chopped his hand into little pieces? Eiji liked his hand, he didn't want that to happen.

Now he was scared. He didn't move his hand, just in case he somehow set it off. Eiji could feel tears starting to form in his eyes. He didn't know what to do. After another few seconds he gave up on trying to let Oishi relax. Eiji needed him.

"Oishiiiiii!" He heard the bedroom door being flung open, and Oishi ran to the kitchen.

"What's wrong? Are you hurt? Did something break?" Oishi had started worrying when Eiji yelled, and when he saw Eiji almost crying the worry approached panic.

"My hand is stuck, and I don't want it to get chopped up!" Eiji waved frantically at the sink with his free hand. Oishi came over to the sink to inspect the situation.

"You're holding onto something, right? Just let go, and you'll be able to get your hand out." Oishi was glad nothing was seriously wrong.

"But I can't! I dropped my ring, but I caught it, and that's why I'm stuck! I don't wanna let go of it." Eiji was crying, and Oishi held his free hand and tried to calm him down.

"Why won't you let go of the ring?"

"Because it's from Oishi and it's special! I don't wanna lose it!" Oishi smiled.

"I'm glad you like it so much, but it's okay to let go of it."

"But Oishi!" Oishi put a hand on Eiji's shoulder.

"It's alright, I don't mind. We can probably get it out later. And if we can't, I'll buy you a new one. Okay?" Eiji wiped a tear off his cheek with the back of his free hand.

"Okay." Slowly, he opened his hand, letting the ring fall, and pulled it out. He wiggled his fingers, as if making sure they still worked. Oishi took Eiji's hand and examined it.

"Good. It's not hurt." Eiji looked back at the sink.

"But I lost your ring..."

"It's okay. You're safe, and that's what matters: You're more important to me than a ring." Eiji threw his arms around Oishi and buried his face in Oishi's shoulder. Oishi returned the hug and patted Eiji on the head.

~Omake~

The washing machine buzzed, announcing that the load of laundry was ready to be put in the dryer. Eiji hopped up immediately.

"I'll get it! I did all the socks first, since I didn't have any clean ones and had to borrow yours yesterday. Oh, but I really wanna wear my favorite shirt, so I put that in, too!" Eiji looked proud of himself.

"The red shirt?" Oishi hoped Eiji had picked a new favorite shirt.

"Yep!" He hadn't.

Eiji bounced off to put the clothes in the dryer, leaving Oishi to sigh and shake his head, though he was smiling. He heard Eiji open the door of the washing machine, and then a yell came from the laundry room.

"Oishiii! All the socks are pink!" Oishi had to laugh at the surprise in Eiji's voice.


End file.
